E.G. Daily a star in the shadows

Jan. 9, 2014

E.G. Daily's career has spanned more than 30 years and has included a No. 1 radio single, appearances in iconic '80s movies, major voice-over gigs and a recent stint on 'The Voice.' / Powerpuff photos courtesy: Cartoon Network

If there’s ever a movie made about the life of E.G. Daily, it undoubtedly will be called “The Voice.”

Her career has spanned more than 30 years and has included a No. 1 radio single, appearances in a few iconic ’80s movies, major voice-over gigs and a recent stint, ironically, on “The Voice.”

Daily has managed to succeed mostly in the shadows. Many people are familiar with the character Tommy Pickles in “Rugrats,” or Babe the pig in “Babe” or Baby Mumble in “Happy Feet,” yet you would be hard pressed to find someone who knows all those characters came from the same person.

Cartoon Network is airing a new “Powerpuff Girls” special this month, and Daily has resurrected her job as the voice of Buttercup, one of the cartoon’s three lead superheroes.

Back when her singing career was at its peak, Daily also was recognized as Dottie, Pee Wee Herman’s love interest in the 1985 film, “Pee Wee’s Big Adventure.”

She was also known for playing the lead singer of a band playing a school dance in the cult classic John Cusack movie, “Better off Dead,” and starred alongside Nicolas Cage in the 1983 film, “Valley Girl.”

If that’s not enough, she also appeared on “Friends” and sang part of the theme song for “Two and a Half Men.”

People of all ages know Daily’s work, whether they realize it or not.

“It’s crazy. My fanbase spans from little children to adults,” Daily said in a recent interview with the Tribune from her home in Hollywood. “You’ll enter the room and all the adults will be like ‘You’re Dottie in ‘Pee Wee’s Big Adventure.’”

“Then their teen boy will be sitting there trying to be all cool, and he’s like ‘I heard you do cartoons.’ I break out (Tommy Pickles) and that kid goes from being a cool dude to a cute kid again,” she said. “They’re so in awe and can’t believe it. That’s so incredible that I can take a teenaged boy who’s trying to be too cool for himself and turn him back into a happy kid ’cause he’s so enthralled by Tommy Pickles and in the same room, move his parents.”

In the fall, fans of the TV singing show “The Voice” were surprised to see Daily competing. After all, the voice-over actress already had a respectable career as a singer in the ’80s, including a No. 1 hit in 1986 with “Say It, Say It.”

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On “The Voice,” she performed the Faith Hill song “Breathe” and was good enough to prompt CeeLo Green and Blake Shelton to turn their chairs to look at her, a gesture that means the contestant has gone on to the next round.

“I’ve been real successful with my animation and films but to go up there and try to do something that was my first love … it had nothing to do with anything other than I love to sing for people,” the 52-year-old entertainer said. “At this point, you could tell me right now that I’ve won the show. I feel like I won. It literally is like I won the golden ticket.”

Daily eventually was eliminated, but she’s not mpoing. After all, with two teenaged daughters, she managed to get back into the cool category with her kids and their friends.

“I went to back-to-school night the other night and I was super cool mom again,” she said with a laugh. “I was super cool mom during elementary school because I was the ‘Tommy Pickles’ mom. I sort of lost my cool for a while because I wasn’t anything. (Now), I’m the super cool mom from ‘The Voice.’”

The “Powerpuff Girls” had a huge run in the early 2000s with 78 episodes airing from ’98 to 2005.

The tiny girls with superpowers have been gone since then but are returning this month in “Powerpuff Girls: Dance Pantsed.” Daily, as always, voices the green dress-wearing Buttercup.

She started acting in commercials when she was 8 and was playing in bands at age 14 along the Sunset Strip.

There’s never really been a lull in her career, but you won’t find Daily expecting things to just fall in place. She knows it could end tomorrow.

“No matter how many jobs I’ve booked, I’ll say ‘You’re kidding. Really?’ I never take it for granted,” she said. “I feel so blessed. I think it’s because there’s a little kid in me that believes that anything can happen. I think if you believe you can’t, you won’t and if you believe you can, you will.”